On this last day of 2010 the staff of the State Library of Queensland would like to wish you all a Happy New Year for 2011. 2010 was a great year for the John Oxley Library with beautiful new additions to the collections, enriching learning programs, school visits, exhibitions, talks, symposiums and a host of … Read more
Major flooding of the Burnett River is relatively infrequent but when heavy rainfall pours down, resulting from low pressure systems over the catchment, significant river rises and floods have occurred, such as those in the years 1875, 1890, 1893, 1928, 1942, 1954, 1971 and presently in 2010. The following John Oxley Library images record some … Read more
Online newspaper databases have been around for quite a while now providing users with an historic treasure trove of press articles from a wide variety of titles and from different periods in time. The State Library of Queensland enables access to these subscription only newspaper databases via its website for e-service card holders. They include … Read more
50,000 copyright-free Queensland images from our collections are now available through Wikimedia Commons. This State Library of Queensland image is Wikimedia’s newest banner. This is the largest collection donated by an Australian cultural institution and the fourth largest collection made available on the site since the establishment of Wikimedia Commons, an online repository of free-use images, … Read more
The Queensland bungalow style arrived in Australia around the time of the 1914 -18 Great War and, aside from the occasional earlier example; our bungalow style belongs to the between-Wars period, this publication will inform homeowners about characteristic features of the interior and exterior detail of original homes. The State Library of Queensland has … Read more
Some readers might have seen the recent Who Do You Think You Are episode on the singer Tina Arena. Tina’s father migrated to Queensland from Italy in 1955, arriving in Cairns and working as a sugar cane cutter in the area. Queensland State Archives holds records relating to Italian immigrants in its collection. Some examples … Read more
Are you are still trying to catch up on your last minute Christmas shopping? Why not get some inspiration from our 1921 McWhirter’s Xmas Shopping Guide? It’s been fully digitised and we’d love to share it with you. Just click here: http://hdl.handle.net/10462/comp/1536 Items to tempt you include table delicacies and delicious sweets – pure, … Read more
I recently spent an enjoyable evening at the Queensland Writers Centre’s Christmas break-up. The highlight of the evening was the announcement of the recipient of the 2011 ‘Johnno Award’. This award was established by the QWC and named after David Malouf’s seminal novel. Whereas the novel brings Queensland alive in Australian literature, the award honours … Read more
Today the State Library recognised the great contribution made by its dedicated volunteers by hosting a delicious Christmas lunch in The Studio to thank them all for a tremendous year. Certificates of service were presented to a number of volunteers including the John Oxley Library’s John Wilson for ten years service and Jean Stewart for … Read more
The new Queensland Historical Atlas website was launched on Tuesday night at Brisbane’s Customs House. The website is a collaborative project between the Queensland Museum and The University of Queensland. Planning began in 2006, resulting in a grant from the Australian Research Council Linkage Scheme for 2007-10. The website contains writings about the past, present … Read more